DEVANGA CHARITHRA
Devanga Charithra or the history and the origin of
Devangas was written in the Brahmanda Purana of Maha Puranas thousands
of years ago. With the passage of time the Charitra was interpreted in
different languages, as Devangas migrated from place to place across
India. While the central theme remained unchanged, the story seemed to
have undergone modifications through the ages. It was retold and written
a number of times. Accordingly, several interesting versions of the
Devanga Charithra have come to be known today and one of them is
described below.
Devangas are believed to have originated from the
body cells of Devala Maharshi, a sage and a devotee of Lord Siva.
According to another view, Devangas had emerged from the body organs of
Devas or the celestials and hence called 'Dev Angas'.
Long before
the emergence of Devangas, the Devas or the celestials were roaming
naked. They had their persons covered only by ornaments much to the
chagrin of Asuras, who chased, heckled and made fun of them all the
time. Their life became so miserable that only Lord Siva could bring
them relief. The Lord summoned one of the greatest of all sages, Devala
Maharshi and ordained to create robes for the Devas.
Devala Maharshi
set about to explore the daunting project of making clothes for the
thirty three crore strong Devas . But the Asuras blocked his route by
throwing boulders and tree trunks. They even plotted to kill the Sage by
inducting the mightiest of Asuras, Mahishasura .
The Demon
Mahishasura contended that Devala Maharshi was not his peer . He charged
his army generals instead . They were seven in number and each one of
them was distinct by an exclusive colour. They had earlier stolen the
bow of Indra or the Indra Dhanus and digested its colours. The generals
attacked Devala Maharshi but could alone succeed in disabling and
putting him to sleep.They asked Mahishasura to step in, lest the sage
would rise from his slumber and launch a counter attack.
Hurt by the
failure of his generals, Mahishasura unleashed his brute force and
plunged all the Deva Lokas in darkness. Chaos prevailed everywhere. Sage
Narada who had been witnessing the events rushed to Lord Siva and
sought Lord's intervention for the rescue of Deva Lokas.
Mahishasura
was unassailable by virtue of his boons granted to him so liberally by
Brahma, Siva and even Vishnu. Only an inconceivable weapon beyond the
prowess of the divine trinity could kill Mahishasura. Lord Siva invoked a
conference of the trinity. The three Lords, Brahma, Vishnu and Siva
conceived Sakthi who appeared as Chamundeshwari riding a fierce lion.
She had ten hands armed with ten diverse weapons.
Chamundeshwari's
resplendence swept the darkness away instantly and flooded all the
worlds with brilliant illumination. With his eyes dazzled , Mahishasura
was awestruck and stood amazed. In a flash of action, Chamundeshwari
struck the Asura with thrusts of her weapons and pierced his skin
inflicting thousands of injuries. Blood spurted out from the Asura and
sprouted like fountains.The slain Mahishasura fell with a thud and in
the process crushed his seven generals underneath his mountainous
frame.His blood condensed into long silken threads of yarn that had all
the colours and hues of a rainbow blended into them.
Devala Maharshi
rose, acclaimed Chamundeshwari as Mahishasuramardani and sang in
praise. With Her blessings he picked up the bundles of yarn and
proceeded to carry out his task uninterrupted. All he needed to do was
only weave the thread into a cloth and with proper tools . He walked
straight to the wonderful city of Maya, the master builder. Maya could
materialize anything from thin air and arrived at an object,a tool, an
instrument, a house, a mansion or even a mighty city. Devala Maharshi
revealed his intention and asked for assistance. Maya was pleased and he
designed a loom made out of wood drawn from the root of Parijatha
Vriksham of Indra Loka. He explained its operation with hands and feet
and with the participation of six indriyams or senses.
Devala
Maharshi left the city of Maya, with the hand loom. From each cell of
his body emerged a weaver and soon there were thousands of Devanga
weavers both men and women who made replicas of the loom and began
weaving rolls of fabric. Devala Maharshi wove the first piece of cloth
or vasthram and proceeded to Kailasa to offer to Lord Siva. Enchanted by
the beauty of the fabric, Goddess Parvathi received the cloth in
admiration and draped it around Lord Siva and Herself .The divine duo
showered ample blessings on Devala Maharshi.
Following Devala
Maharshi, the Devanga weavers visited all the Deva Lokas and offered the
woven cloth to the Devas. The Devas had their attire and were fully
decorated. They were no more a laughing stock before the Asuras . They
were immensely pleased and shared all their skills with Devangas who
were blessed to be the most talented community of people on earth.
DEVANGA PURANA
History of DevangaDevanga is a sub-caste in Hinduism.
They were one of the weaving castes in India. This page mainly deals
with Devangas of Karnataka.OriginsDevangas are of Brahmanical origin.
They are Prakrut Brahmins (meaning brahmins by birth). The majority of
them are weavers of silk and cotton clothes.There were also famous
Devang kings like Boja Raja of Ujjain (Uttar Pradesh, India). Many were
also warriors during Vijayanagar times, according to warrior stones
found in Hampi, Karnataka. Their native state was the kingdom of Ujjain
where even to this day they form the major community. Their chief deity
is Chowdeshwari(Chamundeshwari).They are Typical Kshatriyas of South and
can be compared with the Rajput and Thakur of North.As is typical with
other castes, Devangas became an endogamous unit of weavers, either due
to caste rules or due to typical social conditions of India.[edit] Myth
of originDevangas trace the origin of their weaving tradition to a sage
called Devala Maharshi. According to tradition, Devala Maharishi was the
first person to weave the cotton cloth and to give it to Lord Shiva,
who up until this time had been using animal skin. When Devala was
taking the cloth to the king, demons came to attack him. Goddess
Chowdeshwari (Chamundeshwari,a form of Durga,a warrior Goddess created
by the Gods Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra, to fight the demon Mahishasura),
perched on a lion, fought and vanquished the demons so that Devala
Maharishi could give the cloth to the king.[citation needed].The woven
clothes were taken to Lord Shiva. Check Devanga Purana.[edit]
SectsDevanga was originally divided into two groups, the gandoru and
namdoru. There were Saivite and Vaishnavite divisions among Devangas in
the old days. Every one of the warrior sub sect have a sword in their
homes. After the decline they settled in all parts of TamilNadu. Devanga
Literacy in TamilNadu is High about 75% of them are doctors, Engineers
and also in Leading Government Positions.source: Rigveda Devanga (Div am
ga) was the first ever Bhramin who (OHM) comes to this world to give
clothes to human beings Thiruvalluvar in his eighth poem says one cannot
reach PARAMAPATHA until one surrendered to this Bhramin(OHM).Even to
this day, the Devangas are either Saivites or Vaishnavites. In any
Devanga marriage, bride and groom should not belong to the same sect
(Saivite or Vaishnavite).For finding origin we have to explore RIG VEDA
and history of Gayatri Peeda at Hampi from Vedic age which was started
by Lord Shiva to SPREAD DEVALA Dharma throughout the world asper
Sreepathy Panditha. Moreover the Psupatha of Laguleesa emerges and more
Hindu divisions like Kasmira Shaiva were created by so many Saints based
different areas.[edit] Devanga and LingayatLingayats were the most
influential group in Vijayanagara empire. The Lingayats of the western
telangana region were the kannada speakers. The Kannada Devanga and
Kannada Lingayats were closely associated. Since telangana Lingayats are
very highly disciplined and talented, Devangas had a very high respect
on them and in fact considered them as a part of their community. At
that time the Devangas of the telanga region are vaishnavites. Devangas
regarded the Lingayats as shaivites and called them Lingayats.This group
of telangana Lingayats served the Vijaya empire in all disciplines and
as well as were the close associates to the King in all ways. Due to
this relationship Devangas were able to find a place in the Kings court.
At the time of Islamic invasion, this group of people has to leave the
empire. The trading members of Devanga community, were able to lead the
groups of people in the telangana region towards all of their trading
destinations. Many moved towards the south(towards the river cauvery),
due to the request from the royal community. This includes the major
communities like Kannada Devangas and Lingayats.These kannada devangas
as well as Lingayats due to their close association with telugu devangas
and telegu was also predominantly spoken in the region, were using the
end slang for respect as “andda” instead of “Ree” (a need of the day for
the effective business). This group of kannada devanga where ever they
moved, they moved together. Even today this group of kannada devangas
does not conduct any festival without the consultation of Lingayats from
both with in and outside, due to their very high respect to telengana
Lingayats.These Lingayats of south lives as Lingayats with in the
Devanga community and also maintains separate identity by having links
with Lingayats of karnataka. Off all the groups moved in all the
directions in many a place Lingayats and devangas had close association
but live as separate groups.[edit] Geographic distributionPeople of the
same caste have different names in different states; Devangas are found
in the states of Assam, UP, MP, HP, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhrapradesh,
Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Today many languages are spoken by
Devanga people. Accordingly, they call themselves as Kannada Devanga and
Telugu Devanga.There is no Tamil Devanga as such. Some even speak
Marathi in parts of Maharastra. Devangas are found in most of the Indian
states.There is also a large Kannada speaking community of Kannada
Devangas in Tamil Nadu are mainly based in
Kullichettipatti,Chinnalapatti, T.Kunnathur, Salem, Theni,
Palanichettipatti (pcpatti),Theni, Bodinayakanur,Kambam, Tirupur,
Coimbatore, Mettupalayam, Coimbatore, Komarapalayam, Pallipalayam,Erode,
Dindugal, Aruppukottai, Sulakkarai, Madurai,sankaralingapuram, Chennai
and Virudhunagar. In Kerala, Kannada Devangas are concentrated in a few
villages ,prominently in Kuthampully (Thrissur dist), also in villages
,Karimpuzha, Kallanchira, Vallangi- Nemmara, all in Palghat dist, in
pockets of Chittur (Palghat dist)& Kasaragode towns.In Karnataka
they are predominantly present in Kollegal, Dodda Ballapur,
Bangalore,Mangalore,Mysore, Davangere, Chitradurga, shivamogga,
Hubli/Dharwad, Rabkavi, Rampur, Banahatti, Jamkhandi,Bagalkot,Bellary
and Belagaum. As per information passed from their ancestors, it was
said that they had migrated from Mysore zone, when these areas were
under the rule of King Chikka Chamaraja Wadayar of Mysore (around 1660
CE). The migration is said to be due to incompatible sultanate culture
and the bitter experiences the community faced in the Vijayanagara
empire (1560 AD). These migrations took place in batches after batches,
which has branched itself; some on the northern side of the Kaveri
River, some on the southern side of the Kaveri and some towards the
western coasts, including the present regions of south-western Karnataka
and northern Kerala, looking for culturally safe and protective
settlement. The high influence of local social structures, local
languages, and lack of Kannada literacy has brought in many variations,
including the accent among many groups. Their kula devatha(family deity)
is Goddess Chamundeshwari, which is also the family deity of the Mysore
dynasty.Also, in Karnataka a Malayali weavers’ caste called Chaliya
officially identifies itself as Devanga. However, culturally they differ
completely from Kannada Devangas as the later is patriarchal and
Chaliyas are matrilineal and primarily goddess worshipers.There are 101
sub sects.Some of the prominent sub sects are Ladhegar, Balithars,
Siddhu koluthar, Yenthelar, Kappelar, Iremaneru, Kal Kotlar, Chinnu
Kotlar, Kanjil Kudithars, Segunthalars,Ampukollars, Sevvelars,Anilar
etc.The Balithar sub sect people can marry any of the other 100 sub
sects people.Some of the Devanga’s (Sects like Ladhegar, Balithar,
Kappelar – Ship-goers) were traders. Ladhegars more in number and
powerfull subsect with most of them in high power in TamilNadu.They
having first preferences to do pooja in Sri Ramalinga Devi Temples. Some
of them were tax-collectors in Kollegal during Tipu Sultan Days. This
association could be the reason that the Chowdeshwari temples Kalasams
have a half moon and a star.Like in old days men are married at a very
late age, like 30. Women attain good education even today, hence the
family have good growth.Some schools in Tamilnadu were constructed by
Devanga community people and even today associations (Narpani Mandrams)
of youngsters are running good schools.[edit] TriviaDevangas, along with
other weaver communities, held good appointments during Vijayanagar
King Krishnadevaraya’s rule.North Karnataka Devangas are primarily
cotton or Khan weavers, whereas south Karnataka Devangas primarily
manufacture silk sarees, including both pure and art silk. This is due
to their association with Sourashtrams (primarily silk traders) when
they were in Mysore. It was also said that Saurashtrians migrated from
Saurashtra, part of Gujarat/Maharashtra, and settled down in the places
where Devangas settled due to their business relationships. Even today
we can notice the presence of Saurashtrians in most of the places where
Devangas had settled, especially in Madurai and Salem.Food habits of
Devangas also change from place to place. Some of the Devanga
communities are vegetarians. The tradition of yagnopaveeta among the
brahmans was derived from devangas.Salem and Komaraplayam Devanga
Chettiars are known for their non-vegetarian cuisines.[edit]
AssociationsThe international Devanga community has headquartered in
Karnataka.Kannada Devanaga yuvaka sanga has office in lakkasandra
bangalore (near to the Sri Ramalinga Chowedeshwari devestana)Andra
Pradesh in North America have formed the Andhra Devanga Sangam Of North
America (ADSONA).Tamilnadu Telugu Devangar International Online
Society.Karavai Devanga Samaja has its offices in Bangalore. Its members
are from the Devanga community from the coastal regions of Karnataka
and Kerala[edit] Devanga marriagesDevanga marriages are like most Hindu
marriages in the south with only subtle differences. Devangas generally
have sangas or marriage consultants who will have the list of
prospective brides and grooms. Most of the devanga marriages are
arranged marriages. Generally it is the parents of the groom or bride
who search for the prospective partner for their children. The groom or
bride generally gives an opinion as to the qualities, education,
occupation etc. they would like to see in the future partner.Once the
parents shortlist the girl or boy, horoscope matching is done with the
help of an astrologer. Once the matching is agreed by the astrologer, a
meeting of the prospective boy and girl is arranged over a cup of tea or
coffee. Boy and girl exchange their views and if agreed to by both boy
and girl a date is fixed for the engagement, which is a small ceremony,
generally held at the girl’s house, wherein relatives of both boy and
girl are present. If there are space constraints, the ceremony is held
in a hotel or marriage hall. Ring is exchanged after engagement. As
among Hindus in general, premarital sex is not permitted.The marriage
date is fixed on the day of engagement. Marriages are generally held at
marriage halls, or “choultries” as they are popularly called. Marriages
are elaborate ceremonies lasting two to three days. (Due to rising
costs, it is nowadays usually restricted to two days.) On the day prior
to the wedding day, the bride arrives at the marriage hall. She seeks
the blessings of the god. Then rituals will start.The first of the
rituals is harisna, wherein the bride’s hands and feet are massaged with
turmeric mixed with oil by all the married ladies. This is followed by
the bangle ceremony, wherein new bangles specially brought by the
banglewoman to the occasion are worn by all the ladies. This is followed
by a nice bath, and other rituals continue whole night.On the morning
of the next day, the groom goes to temple with dhoti and umbrella for a
ritual called kashiyatra wherein he is intercepted by the parents of the
bride and his feet is washed by the girl’s parents on a silver plate.
After this ritual, the groom moves to the marriage hall for the
all-important sacred thread tying (mangal sutra) which marks the
culmination of bachelorhood and entering into married life. This is
followed by lunch to all the invitees. In the evening a reception is
arranged wherein the bride and bridegroom sit/stand on a podium. All the
invitees greet the newlywed couples. This is followed by dinner.The
couple stays together till they die. Divorces are few or unheard of as
of now Sri
Chowdeswari TemplesThe most famous Godess Chowdeswari temple is situated
near Mysore in Chamundi hills(name derived from
Chamundeswari).Chamundeswari_TempleMany tempels were created centuries
ago as people migrate and settle down in secure places. The temple
management runs through the biggest family then.Such a centuries old
Temple of Sri Chowdeswari is located in Tiruppur in the village
Kanakkampalayam, where many families are still following the family job
(Weaving).Beautiful Sri Ramalinga Chowedeshwari Temple is situated in
bangalore (laksandra)[near to NATIONAL DAIRY BANGALORE].The temple
contains the gods like Sri Sri Ramalinga
Chowedeshwari,ganesha,subriyamanya,ramalinga swamy,devala
dasamaya,guru(pragaspathi).Sri Ramalinga Sowdambikai Amman temple is
also located at Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, in the heart of the city. It is
one of the most prominent temples in Coimbatore region. The temple is
known for its one-of-a-kind ‘swords festival’ where hundreds and
thousands of devotees participate in a long procession.Sri Ramalinga
Chowedeshwari temple is also sutiated in the Hosa Road that is in the
the hosour main road Bangalore .Lots of families who are following
weaving in the area like Hosa Road and Garvebhavipalaya(hosour main
road,Bangalore).
History of Devanga
Devanga is a sub-caste in
Hinduism. They were one of the weaving castes in India. This page mainly
deals with Devangas of Karnataka.
Origins
Devangas are of
Brahmanical origin. They are Prakrut Brahmins (meaning brahmins by
birth). The majority of them are weavers of silk and cotton clothes.
There were also famous Devang kings like Boja Raja of Ujjain (Uttar
Pradesh, India). Many were also warriors during Vijayanagar times,
according to warrior stones found in Hampi, Karnataka. Their native
state was the kingdom of Ujjain where even to this day they form the
major community. Their chief deity is Chowdeshwari(Chamundeshwari).They
are Typical Kshatriyas of South and can be compared with the Rajput and
Thakur of North.
As is typical with other castes, Devangas became an
endogamous unit of weavers, either due to caste rules or due to typical
social conditions of India.
Myth of origin
Devangas trace the
origin of their weaving tradition to a sage called Devala Maharshi.
According to tradition, Devala Maharishi was the first person to weave
the cotton cloth and to give it to Lord Shiva, who up until this time
had been using animal skin. When Devala was taking the cloth to the
king, demons came to attack him. Goddess Chowdeshwari (Chamundeshwari,a
form of Durga,a warrior Goddess created by the Gods Brahma, Vishnu and
Rudra, to fight the demon Mahishasura), perched on a lion, fought and
vanquished the demons so that Devala Maharishi could give the cloth to
the king.[citation needed].The woven clothes were taken to Lord Shiva.
Check Devanga Purana.
Sects
Devanga was originally divided into
two groups, the gandoru and namdoru. There were Saivite and Vaishnavite
divisions among Devangas in the old days. Every one of the warrior sub
sect have a sword in their homes. After the decline they settled in all
parts of TamilNadu. Devanga Literacy in TamilNadu is High about 75% of
them are doctors, Engineers and also in Leading Government Positions.
source: Rigveda Devanga (Div am ga) was the first ever Bhramin who
(OHM) comes to this world to give clothes to human beings Thiruvalluvar
in his eighth poem says one cannot reach PARAMAPATHA until one
surrendered to this Bhramin(OHM).
Even to this day, the Devangas are
either Saivites or Vaishnavites. In any Devanga marriage, bride and
groom should not belong to the same sect (Saivite or Vaishnavite).For
finding origin we have to explore RIG VEDA and history of Gayatri Peeda
at Hampi from Vedic age which was started by Lord Shiva to SPREAD DEVALA
Dharma throughout the world asper Sreepathy Panditha. Moreover the
Psupatha of Laguleesa emerges and more Hindu divisions like Kasmira
Shaiva were created by so many Saints based different areas.
Devanga and Lingayat
Lingayats were the most influential group in Vijayanagara empire. The
Lingayats of the western telangana region were the kannada speakers. The
Kannada Devanga and Kannada Lingayats were closely associated. Since
telangana Lingayats are very highly disciplined and talented, Devangas
had a very high respect on them and in fact considered them as a part of
their community. At that time the Devangas of the telanga region are
vaishnavites. Devangas regarded the Lingayats as shaivites and called
them Lingayats.
This group of telangana Lingayats served the Vijaya
empire in all disciplines and as well as were the close associates to
the King in all ways. Due to this relationship Devangas were able to
find a place in the Kings court. At the time of Islamic invasion, this
group of people has to leave the empire. The trading members of Devanga
community, were able to lead the groups of people in the telangana
region towards all of their trading destinations. Many moved towards the
south(towards the river cauvery), due to the request from the royal
community. This includes the major communities like Kannada Devangas and
Lingayats.
These kannada devangas as well as Lingayats due to their
close association with telugu devangas and telegu was also
predominantly spoken in the region, were using the end slang for respect
as “andda” instead of “Ree” (a need of the day for the effective
business). This group of kannada devanga where ever they moved, they
moved together. Even today this group of kannada devangas does not
conduct any festival without the consultation of Lingayats from both
with in and outside, due to their very high respect to telengana
Lingayats.
These Lingayats of south lives as Lingayats with in the
Devanga community and also maintains separate identity by having links
with Lingayats of karnataka. Off all the groups moved in all the
directions in many a place Lingayats and devangas had close association
but live as separate groups.
Geographic distribution
People of
the same caste have different names in different states; Devangas are
found in the states of Assam, UP, MP, HP, Gujarat, Maharashtra,
Andhrapradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Today many languages
are spoken by Devanga people. Accordingly, they call themselves as
Kannada Devanga and Telugu Devanga.There is no Tamil Devanga as such.
Some even speak Marathi in parts of Maharastra. Devangas are found in
most of the Indian states.
There is also a large Kannada speaking
community of Kannada Devangas in Tamil Nadu are mainly based in
Kullichettipatti,Chinnalapatti, T.Kunnathur, Salem, Theni,
Palanichettipatti (pcpatti),Theni, Bodinayakanur,Kambam, Tirupur,
Coimbatore, Mettupalayam, Coimbatore, Komarapalayam, Pallipalayam,Erode,
Dindugal, Aruppukottai, Sulakkarai, Madurai,sankaralingapuram, Chennai
and Virudhunagar. In Kerala, Kannada Devangas are concentrated in a few
villages ,prominently in Kuthampully (Thrissur dist), also in villages
,Karimpuzha, Kallanchira, Vallangi- Nemmara, all in Palghat dist, in
pockets of Chittur (Palghat dist)& Kasaragode towns.In Karnataka
they are predominantly present in Kollegal, Dodda Ballapur,
Bangalore,Mangalore,Mysore, Davangere, Chitradurga, shivamogga,
Hubli/Dharwad, Rabkavi, Rampur, Banahatti, Jamkhandi,Bagalkot,Bellary
and Belagaum. As per information passed from their ancestors, it was
said that they had migrated from Mysore zone, when these areas were
under the rule of King Chikka Chamaraja Wadayar of Mysore (around 1660
CE). The migration is said to be due to incompatible sultanate culture
and the bitter experiences the community faced in the Vijayanagara
empire (1560 AD). These migrations took place in batches after batches,
which has branched itself; some on the northern side of the Kaveri
River, some on the southern side of the Kaveri and some towards the
western coasts, including the present regions of south-western Karnataka
and northern Kerala, looking for culturally safe and protective
settlement. The high influence of local social structures, local
languages, and lack of Kannada literacy has brought in many variations,
including the accent among many groups. Their kula devatha(family deity)
is Goddess Chamundeshwari, which is also the family deity of the Mysore
dynasty.
Also, in Karnataka a Malayali weavers’ caste called
Chaliya officially identifies itself as Devanga. However, culturally
they differ completely from Kannada Devangas as the later is patriarchal
and Chaliyas are matrilineal and primarily goddess worshipers.
There are 101 sub sects.Some of the prominent sub sects are Ladhegar,
Balithars, Siddhu koluthar, Yenthelar, Kappelar, Iremaneru, Kal Kotlar,
Chinnu Kotlar, Kanjil Kudithars, Segunthalars,Ampukollars,
Sevvelars,Anilar etc.The Balithar sub sect people can marry any of the
other 100 sub sects people.
Some of the Devanga’s (Sects like
Ladhegar, Balithar, Kappelar – Ship-goers) were traders. Ladhegars more
in number and powerfull subsect with most of them in high power in
TamilNadu.They having first preferences to do pooja in Sri Ramalinga
Devi Temples. Some of them were tax-collectors in Kollegal during Tipu
Sultan Days. This association could be the reason that the Chowdeshwari
temples Kalasams have a half moon and a star.
Like in old days men
are married at a very late age, like 30. Women attain good education
even today, hence the family have good growth.
Some schools in
Tamilnadu were constructed by Devanga community people and even today
associations (Narpani Mandrams) of youngsters are running good schools.
Trivia
Devangas, along with other weaver communities, held good appointments during Vijayanagar King Krishnadevaraya’s rule.
North Karnataka Devangas are primarily cotton or Khan weavers, whereas
south Karnataka Devangas primarily manufacture silk sarees, including
both pure and art silk. This is due to their association with
Sourashtrams (primarily silk traders) when they were in Mysore. It was
also said that Saurashtrians migrated from Saurashtra, part of
Gujarat/Maharashtra, and settled down in the places where Devangas
settled due to their business relationships. Even today we can notice
the presence of Saurashtrians in most of the places where Devangas had
settled, especially in Madurai and Salem.
Food habits of Devangas
also change from place to place. Some of the Devanga communities are
vegetarians. The tradition of yagnopaveeta among the brahmans was
derived from devangas.
Salem and Komaraplayam Devanga Chettiars are known for their non-vegetarian cuisines.
Associations
The international Devanga community has headquartered in
Karnataka.Kannada Devanaga yuvaka sanga has office in lakkasandra
bangalore (near to the Sri Ramalinga Chowedeshwari devestana)Andra
Pradesh in North America have formed the Andhra Devanga Sangam Of North
America (ADSONA).
Tamilnadu Telugu Devangar International Online Society.
Karavai Devanga Samaja has its offices in Bangalore. Its members are
from the Devanga community from the coastal regions of Karnataka and
Kerala
Devanga marriages
Devanga marriages are like most Hindu
marriages in the south with only subtle differences. Devangas generally
have sangas or marriage consultants who will have the list of
prospective brides and grooms. Most of the devanga marriages are
arranged marriages. Generally it is the parents of the groom or bride
who search for the prospective partner for their children. The groom or
bride generally gives an opinion as to the qualities, education,
occupation etc. they would like to see in the future partner.
Once
the parents shortlist the girl or boy, horoscope matching is done with
the help of an astrologer. Once the matching is agreed by the
astrologer, a meeting of the prospective boy and girl is arranged over a
cup of tea or coffee. Boy and girl exchange their views and if agreed
to by both boy and girl a date is fixed for the engagement, which is a
small ceremony, generally held at the girl’s house, wherein relatives of
both boy and girl are present. If there are space constraints, the
ceremony is held in a hotel or marriage hall. Ring is exchanged after
engagement. As among Hindus in general, premarital sex is not permitted.
The marriage date is fixed on the day of engagement. Marriages are
generally held at marriage halls, or “choultries” as they are popularly
called. Marriages are elaborate ceremonies lasting two to three days.
(Due to rising costs, it is nowadays usually restricted to two days.) On
the day prior to the wedding day, the bride arrives at the marriage
hall. She seeks the blessings of the god. Then rituals will start.
The first of the rituals is harisna, wherein the bride’s hands and feet
are massaged with turmeric mixed with oil by all the married ladies.
This is followed by the bangle ceremony, wherein new bangles specially
brought by the banglewoman to the occasion are worn by all the ladies.
This is followed by a nice bath, and other rituals continue whole night.
On the morning of the next day, the groom goes to temple with dhoti and
umbrella for a ritual called kashiyatra wherein he is intercepted by
the parents of the bride and his feet is washed by the girl’s parents on
a silver plate. After this ritual, the groom moves to the marriage hall
for the all-important sacred thread tying (mangal sutra) which marks
the culmination of bachelorhood and entering into married life. This is
followed by lunch to all the invitees. In the evening a reception is
arranged wherein the bride and bridegroom sit/stand on a podium. All the
invitees greet the newlywed couples. This is followed by dinner.
The couple stays together till they die. Divorces are few or unheard of as of now.
